What Learning Without AI Taught the Last Pre-AI Generation

The essay contrasts the author's 2013 coding journey, built on confusion and repeated problem-solving, with a nephew's AI-assisted learning.

Drawing on cognitive science, it argues that effort, retrieval practice, and “desirable difficulty” help create durable structural understanding.

The piece warns that AI can make learning faster and smoother, but may remove the friction that often strengthens retention and transfer.

It leaves open a bigger question: what AI-native learners may gain in speed and tool use, and what they may miss in first-principles thinking.